Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference

The Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) was established in 1991 as a forum for political dialogue between parliamentarians from the Baltic Sea Region.[1] BSPC aims at raising awareness and opinion on issues of current political interest and relevance for the Baltic Sea Region.[2] It promotes and drives various initiatives and efforts to support a sustainable environmental, social and economic development of the Baltic Sea Region. It strives at enhancing the visibility of the Baltic Sea Region and its issues in a wider European context.[3][4]

Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference
NicknameBSPC
PurposeForum for political dialogue between parliamentarians from the Baltic Sea Region
HeadquartersSchwerin
Official language
english
President
Valerijus Simulik
Vice-President
Jorodd Asphjell
Pyry Niemi
Secretary General
Bodo Bahr
Websitebspc.net
25. BSPC in Riga
28. BSPC in Oslo

History

BSPC external interfaces include parliamentary, governmental, sub-regional and other organizations in the Baltic Sea Region and the Northern Dimension area, among them CBSS, HELCOM, the Northern Dimension Partnership in Health and Social Well-Being (NDPHS), the Baltic Sea Labour Network (BSLN), the Baltic Sea States Sub-regional Cooperation (BSSSC) and the Baltic Development Forum.[5]

BSPC shall initiate and guide political activities in the region; support and strengthen democratic institutions in the participating states; improve dialogue between governments, parliaments and civil society; strengthen the common identity of the Baltic Sea Region by means of close co-operation between national and regional parliaments on the basis of equality; and initiate and guide political activities in the Baltic Sea Region, endowing them with additional democratic legitimacy and parliamentary authority.

The political recommendations of the annual Parliamentary Conferences are expressed in a Conference Resolution adopted by consensus by the Conference. The adopted Resolution shall be submitted to the governments of the Baltic Sea region, the CBSS and the EU, and disseminated to other relevant national, regional and local stakeholders in the Baltic Sea region and its neighbourhood.

The beginning 1991

The 1st Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference was held in Helsinki on 7–9 January 1991, on the initiative of the President of the Finnish Parliament, Mr Kalevi Sorsa. The title was the Parliamentary Conference on Cooperation in the Baltic Sea Area. Six successive Conferences had the English name of the “Parliamentary Conference on Cooperation in the Baltic Sea Area”. The 7th Parliamentary Conference replaced the word “Area” with “Region”. The Conference was renamed by the 8th Conference as the “Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference”.

The 1st Conference was attended by parliamentary delegations from Denmark, Estonia, Greenland, Hamburg, Iceland, Karelia, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia, MecklenburgVorpommern, Norway, Poland, Schleswig-Holstein, Sweden, the Åland Islands, the Faroe Islands, and the USSR. Observers were sent by the U.N. European Economic Conference, EFTA, the Helsinki Committee, the Interparliamentary Union, the Nordic Council, and the Council of Europe. Some of the subjects discussed at the Conference were proposed after earlier consultations (a preparatory meeting was held in Helsinki on 13 September 1990) but a number of other issues were discussed at the Conference forum. This gave the Conference the character of a working meeting that identified problems in the Baltic Sea Region needing swift action. Talks held during the Conference concentrated on four subjects: economy, ecology, culture, and politics. The economic discussions were dominated by issues relating to the transition of former communist bloc countries to market economies and the economic reforms in the Soviet Union. It was emphasised that the economic development of the Baltic States and the Leningrad area was vital to the region’s integration and that the West should develop an appropriate mechanism for assisting those areas. The speakers expressed their hope for a rapid opening of the East to a capitalist economy, e. g. through free economic zones. However, they also emphasised that political stability free from armed conflicts is a precondition of development. During the debate on environmental protection, the invited experts presented the situation regarding the contamination of the Baltic Sea waters. This made clear to the Conference participants that ecosystems are not divided by political boundaries and that any measures to improve the natural conditions could be only be successful though joint action. Consequently, solution of ecological problems requires not only technological solutions but also political will and broad understanding. The participants called for urgent action to prevent contamination increasing in the Baltic region. They proposed a number of concrete measures, such as a joint system of taxes and fines for environmental pollution or signing a convention on the reduction of harmful substances added to the fuel of ships using the Baltic Sea.

The Conference also pointed out the importance of developing cooperation in the fields of education and culture. The participants voiced their hope that this cooperation would enable Northern Europe to be a model for coexistence within and between regions and ethnic minorities. The Nordic Council reported a number of initiatives intended to intensify cooperation with the Baltic States: the Council opened its information centres in the capitals of those countries, and the Danish Culture Institute did the same in Riga. At the same time, Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia opened similar centres in Copenhagen. The political debate was dominated by developments in the Baltic States. Their representatives strongly protested against measures taken by the USSR authorities, and other delegates, especially the representatives from Denmark, voiced similar opinions. The discussion also concerned the security issue in the region, the proposed Nordic nuclear weaponfree zone, and cooperation to combat international crime. There was also a proposal to establish a Baltic Sea Council that would compile plans for cooperation in the region, initially in the fields of culture and economy, and later in areas such as technology, power industry, and education. This proposal was soon implemented. In autumn 1991, Denmark and Germany, considering economic and political stabilisation of the Baltic Sea Region, proposed an initiative to establish a new international organisation at governmental level. The Foreign Ministers of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia, Germany, Norway, Poland, Russia and Sweden, as well as representatives of the European Commission met in Copenhagen on 5–6 March 1992. They set up the Council of Baltic Sea States, an organisation to build up democratic institutions in the region and cooperate on matters of economy, culture, environmental protection, nuclear security, and social affairs. The Council is now one of the most important players for international cooperation in the region. The Conference did not produce any formal conclusions or a resolution, but it should be considered as extremely important because of its groundbreaking character. The variety of regional development concepts presented at the Conference provided a basis for further debate and cooperation between the states and regions concerned.

Structure
Map of the members of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference

BSPC gathers parliamentarians from 11 national parliaments, 11 regional parliaments and 5 parliamentary organizations around the Baltic Sea. The BSPC thus constitutes a unique parliamentary bridge between all the EU- and non-EU countries of the Baltic Sea Region.[6]


Members

Members
Country name Arms Flag Membership Parliament Membership status Represented since Members EU relation NATO relation
Denmark full Folketing sovereign state 1991 5 member member
Estonia full Riigikogu sovereign state 1991 member member
Finland full Eduskunta sovereign state member partnership
Germany full Bundestag[7] sovereign state member member
Iceland full Alþingi sovereign state 1991 associate member
Latvia full Saeima sovereign state 1991 member member
Lithuania full Seimas sovereign state 1991 member member
Norway full Storting sovereign state 1991 associate member
Poland full Parliament of Poland sovereign state member member
Sweden full Riksdag sovereign state 1991 member partnership
Åland full Lagting self-governing region of Finland 1991 territory demilitarized zone
Bremen full Bürgerschaft States of Germany territory member
Faroe Islands full Løgting self-governing region of the Unity of the Realm 1991 minimal member
Greenland full Inatsisartut self-governing region of the Unity of the Realm 1991 OCT member
Hamburg full Bürgerschaft States of Germany territory member
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern full Landtag States of Germany 1991 territory member
Schleswig-Holstein full Landtag States of Germany 1991 territory member

St Petersburg, Kaliningrad, Karelia, Leningrad - do these need to be added?

Observers[8]

Conference
Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference
Nr.CityCountryDate
1Helsinki Finland7.-9.1.1991
2Oslo Norway22.-24.4.1992
3Warschau Poland5.-6.5.1994
4Rønne Denmark12.-13.9.1995
5Riga Latvia10.-11.9.1996
6Danzig Poland15.-16.9.1997
7Lübeck Germany7.-8.9.1998
8Mariehamn Åland Islands7.-8.9.1999
9Malmö Sweden4.-5.9.2000
10Greifswald Germany3.-4.9.2001
11Sankt Petersburg[9] Russia30.9.-1.10.2002
12Oulu Finland7.-9.9.2003
13Bergen Norway29.-31.8.2004
14Vilnius Lithuania29.-30.8.2005
15Reykjavík Iceland3.-5.9.2006
16Berlin Germany27.-28.8.2007
17Visby Sweden1.-2.9.2008
18Nyborg Denmark31.8.-1.9.2009
19Mariehamn[10] Åland Islands29.-31.8.2010
20Helsinki Finland28.-30.8.2011
21Sankt Petersburg[11] Russia26.-28.8.2012
22Pärnu[12] Estonia25.-27.8.2013
23Olsztyn Poland24.-26.8.2014
24Rostock[13] Germany31.8.-1.9.2015
25Riga[14] Latvia28.-30.8.2016
26Hamburg[15] Germany3.-5.9.2017
27Mariehamn[16] Åland Islands26.-28.8.2018
28Oslo[17] Norway25.-27.8.2019
29Vilnius Lithuania23.-25.8.2020


See also

References
  1. "Focus on democracy at Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference | Nordic cooperation". www.norden.org. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  2. "Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC)". Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  3. "Itämeren parlamentaarikkokonferenssin Suomen valtuuskunta". www.eduskunta.fi. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  4. "Baltic Sea Region – BALTIC SEA LABOUR FORUM". www.bslf.eu. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  5. "25 Years of BSPC Final-Edititon • BSPC". www.bspc.net. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  6. "Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference | deea | Delegations | European Parliament". www.europarl.europa.eu. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  7. "Deutscher Bundestag - Ostseeparlamentarierkonferenz - Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference..." Deutscher Bundestag (in German). Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  8. "Observers to BSPC valid 5.9.2017 • BSPC". www.bspc.net. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  9. "Speech by Minister Jan-Erik Enestam: Finnish CBSS Presidency, in 11th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference, St. Petersburg". Utrikesministeriet (in Swedish). Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  10. "Vedlegg 7". Stortinget (in Norwegian). 2010-09-15. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  11. Amt, Auswärtiges. "Speech by Ambassador Gerhard Almer, Head of the Task Force for the German Presidency of the Council of the Baltic Sea States 2011/2012, at the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) St Petersburg, 27 August 2012". German Federal Foreign Office. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  12. catchsmartsolution.com, CatchSmart |. "22nd Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference, Pärnu". vasab.org. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  13. "The 24th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference" (PDF). Landtag Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
  14. "25th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference". saeima.lv. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  15. "Parlamentsdatenbank: 27. Ostseeparlamentarierkonferenz (Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference – BSPC) vom 26. bis 28. August 2018 in Mariehamn, Ålandinseln". www.buergerschaft-hh.de. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  16. "The 27th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) | Coalition Clean Baltic". Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  17. "Этот домен припаркован компанией Timeweb". vh276.timeweb.ru. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
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